The Tale of the Rich and Lonely Man
by a fan
Summary: A Fable - How the Tale of the Rich and Lonely Man spread throughout the land.


Disclaimer: I don't own 'em...  
  
Rating: G  
  
Spoilers: All episodes to date  
  
A/N: Thanks to Meka Casto for her wonderful fairytale A Bedtime Story and to WB_BITES for his wonderful fable Eyes Only: The Myth, The Man, The Legend'(Which by the way is unfinished. Hint! Hint!) They gave me the first inspirations for this tale. After seeing Hit a Sister Back I just had to finish it. I hope you enjoy it.  
  
  
THE TALE OF THE RICH AND LONELY MAN  
  
"But perfect love casteth away fear."  
  
Once upon a time there lived a rich and lonely man. He lived in a tall tower in a poor tired city. He was the only rich man left in the city because the wicked wizards placed all the people in bondage. When he walked down the streets he looked with sorrow about him. The once gleaming buildings were now tarnished and old. The streets were filled with garbage where flowers once grew. And the people toiled with sad eyes. The rich man remembered a time when his city was beautiful and its people were free and happy. The man loved his city and his people so he worked tirelessly in his tower for that time to return.   
  
His work was very difficult and dangerous for the wizards were determined to destroy anyone that challenged their domain. So the man worked in secret telling only a trusted few of his secret. His only acquaintances were those that could help him in his mission. Though their hearts were also pure they did not have time to make friends for they were always on guard against the wicked wizards. So despite his riches he was the loneliest man in the city. He worked to save his people but he could tell no one. His heart longed for friendship and companionship but he knew it was not possible for him.  
  
Then one fateful evening when the stars were just right in the sky a fairy princess fell through his window. She was a beautiful impish creature that made him smile. When he discovered her magical powers he asked her to help him in his mission but she refused. Her father was a wicked wizard and she knew the terrible things the wizards could do. She and her brothers and sisters had escaped from her father many years before but she was still terrified of him. She had come to the city to hide from her father for she knew he was still looking for her and her brothers and sisters.. She thought the rich man was wonderful and kind but she told him it was foolishness to battle the wizards.  
  
With a heart full of sorrow the man continued his work. Then one terrible day as he was fighting a wizard's army he was severely wounded and left for dead.   
  
When the fairy princess discovered that the man was wounded she flew to him in haste to show him the kindness he had shown her. While she was at his side a wizard's soldier returned to take the man's life. As she saved him from the soldier she realized that she could no longer hide from the wizards but that she must fight to destroy them.  
  
When she returned to the man she discovered that his wounds were very serious. The wizards had taken away the use of his legs and had wounded his heart very deeply. He needed her help to continue his work so she agreed. She helped him to battle the wizards and he helped her to find her brothers and sisters. As the fairy princess stayed with the man her heart began to change. It was no longer filled with fear but with love for the man and his people. As her love grew she tried to use her powers to heal his legs but it was to no avail. So she concentrated on healing his broken heart with her love.  
  
And so the lonely man's broken heart began to be filled. As she worked and played with him in her impish way his love for her grew each day. Yet the man was ashamed of his wounds and was afraid to speak of his love for the fairy princess. So for many months he was content only to fight battles with her at his side.  
  
Then one terrible day the man learned, that his uncle had been killed by one of the most evil wizards of all and that his family's riches had come from his uncle's evil work. The man renounced his riches and so he was left with only the few possessions he had in his tower to use in his battle against the wicked wizards. Then the fairy princess's father returned. She and her brothers and sisters fought many battles against him. Tragically some were killed and some were captured by her father. But, somehow the fairy princess was able to get away and return to the man in the tower.  
  
And so the man and the fairy princess suffered many hardships as they fought the wicked wizards but their unspoken love for each other helped them endure.   
  
Then after one horrible battle the fairy princess returned to the man wounded and exhausted. As he nursed her back to health he realized he could no longer hide his love for her. He had no ring to give her and no money to buy a ring so he offered her his most precious possession, an old tarnished locket that his father had given his mother. With joy the fairy princess accepted his locket and that same day they pledged their undying love for each other in the vows of marriage.  
  
Many years passed and the man and the fairy princess continued to battle the wicked wizards. At first the battles were many and difficult and the man used all his remaining possessions to fight them. The only thing that remained in his barren tower were the weapons he used to battle the wizards. Yet the fairy princess was always at his side. And with each passing day their love for each other and their people grew. As their love became perfected it cast out the fear in their hearts and strengthened them in their battles.  
  
As the years passed there began to be fewer battles to fight until eventually there were very few wicked wizards left in the land. And so the city slowly began to change.  
  
Then one wonderful day the fairy princess led the man down from his tower and took him to the poorest and dirtiest street in the city where she showed him a young mother and her child. The mother and child were planting flowers along the path and the child was laughing and exclaiming at the beautiful colors. As the man and the fairy princess passed by the mother she looked up from her work and smiled at them with hope and happiness in her eyes. It was then that the man knew that he had succeeded in his mission.   
  
As the flowers began to grow again and the city began to gleam those that had been rescued by the man began to whisper of him to each other. They whispered of the tower where he worked, of the wizards he destroyed and of the riches he forsook to help his people. They whispered of the wounds that he received in battle and of the fairy princess that was always at his side. They whispered that he was indeed the richest man in the city for everyone loved him.  
  
And so the tale went out through all the land of the rich man and his fairy princess who brought flowers back into the streets and happiness back into the people's eyes.  
  
  



End file.
